Tag Archives | trademark infringement

“the fact that defendant received a charter [from the State of Illinois] to use the name ‘Lady Esther Corset Shoppe, Inc.’ does not protect [the defendant].”

Lady Esther, Ltd. sued Lady Esther Corset Shoppe, Inc. for unfair competition based on the defendant’s use of “Lady Esther” in it company name. It appears the defendant argued it was protected from suit because the Illinois Secretary of State approved the formation of its corporation under the name Lady Esther Corset Shoppe. The court rejected this argument in Lady Esther, Ltd. v. Lady Esther Corset Shoppe, Inc., 317 Ill. App. 451, 458 (Ill. App. Ct. 1943).

The Lady Esther case is old, but this point is still valid: the approval of a corporate or LLC name by the Illinois Secretary of State is no …

If during preliminary trademark searching you find a mark that is registered at the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, you may wonder whether that will block your ability to obtain a trademark registration or to use your trademark with your particular goods and services. If the goods or services provided under the registered mark are sufficiently different from the goods or services that you intend to provide under your mark, then there might not be a conflict between the registered mark and your proposed mark.

Trademark rights usually don’t extend to all goods and services. But instead trademark rights extend to the goods and services for which the mark is registered or used and similar goods and services. There is an exception to this rule for famous marks, such as …